Sunday, December 09, 2007

Blogging with iPhone

Blogging quite hard to do because you can't cut, paste & Safari's limit to open webpages.
I'm addicted to my iPhone though with the other features.
Pretty soon I can upload my apo's video. iTunes not working right. Removed it and will download it again sometime soon.

Sunday, November 25, 2007

America's Benign Assimilation with democratic nations!

tip from Lucianne.com
Successful US military assistance to Philippine insurgency is well known in local news but unheralded.

Before 9/11, the southern island of Basilan was a Muslim terrorist hide-out. In 2002, with the help of Green Berets, Filipino army forces cleared it. By last year, Manila-based businesses felt safe enough to invest there. When I visited last year, Basilan had cellphone towers, more roads and bridges paved with asphalt, more schools and increased agricultural production. Power outages were common because of surges in demand, a sign of uneven development but of development nevertheless.

Between risk-prone invasions like Iraq, on the one hand, and isolationism, on the other, the missions in Colombia and the Philippines showcase low-cost, low-risk and tediously unspectacular counterinsurgency options. And these places are not alone. Other U.S. military deployments I have observed recently -- in Algeria, Mali, Niger, Kenya, Georgia and Nepal -- are variations in a minor key. What stands out about all of these missions is their small scale and implicit modesty. We are not in combat in any of these countries -- but, rather, training local militaries that are or might be. In all these countries, our military aid is combined with civilian development assistance. This is the global war on terrorism as preventive rather than as proscriptive. It doesn't cost much. You could spread Green Beret teams across Africa for the price of one F-22 jet. If there is another model out there that will keep the U.S. military engaged without overextending it, and will help move along inter-agency cooperation, I have not seen it.

Thursday, November 01, 2007

Saturday, October 20, 2007

Monday, October 01, 2007

Bataan & Corregidor

Our national history, grossly unemphasized today in Philippine schools. Bataan Death March and surrender in Corregidor. National Park Service website here. We, Filipinos have intertwine with Americans from Pres McKinley's to the present.
Thousands of Americans and Filipinos refused to obey the surrender orders and continued to fight the Japanese forces in a lengthy guerrilla war that lasted until the American recapture of the 7,000-island nation in October, 1944. One technique used during the early part of the guerrilla movement was to dig road pits. Japanese trucks carrying search parties crashed into the pits; soldiers were killed, and the guerrillas took their weapons and ammunition. This greatly infuriated the Japanese commanders, who ordered their troops to literally chain their rifles to themselves to prevent easy guerrilla access.

Fred Thompson quotes...

Tonight Show, 9/06/07. Fred Thompson campaign for POTUS website here.
America has laid down more of its blood and treasure in the cause of freedom than all other countries combined.

Saturday, September 29, 2007

Neuroscience anxiously anticipating NeuroArm!

In my past life, twelve years ago, was a neurosurgical intensive care nurse for 13 odd years. Neurosurgery stagnated with gamma knife, stereotactic surgery and high dose of steroids for major spinal cord injuries. My passion was neurosurgical pre or post care, AVM's, aneurysm clipping, neuro trauma, children and adults alike.
This revolutionary robot arm will greatly improve outcomes post neurosurgery. There will be less collateral damage to surrounding brain tissues during surgery.
Tip from Michael Fumento at tcsdaily.com... NeuroArm/U of Calgary website here.

“Many of our microsurgical techniques evolved in 1960s, and pushed surgeons to the limits of their precision, accuracy, dexterity and stamina,” says Dr. Sutherland, professor of neurosurgery, University of Calgary Faculty of Medicine and Calgary Health Region. “NeuroArm dramatically enhances spatial resolution at which surgeons operate, and shifts surgery from organ towards cell level.”
Designed to be controlled by a surgeon from a computer workstation, neuroArm operates in conjunction with real-time MR imaging, providing surgeons unprecedented detail and control, enabling them to manipulate tools at a microscopic scale. Advanced surgical testing of neuroArm is currently underway, followed by the first patient, anticipated for this summer.
NeuroArm Project schedule for remainder of 2007
Completion of pre-clinical studies
Health Canada regulatory approval
First surgery anticipated for summer 2007
Neurosurgery online abstract in 2004 here, no follow up article since...
FDA approval?
Anticipating anxiously, moi!

Friday, September 28, 2007

President Lyndon Johnson

US President - 1963-1969. White House bio here.
The Great Society program became Johnson's agenda for Congress in January 1965: aid to education, attack on disease, Medicare, urban renewal, beautification, conservation, development of depressed regions, a wide-scale fight against poverty, control and prevention of crime and delinquency, removal of obstacles to the right to vote. Congress, at times augmenting or amending, rapidly enacted Johnson's recommendations. Millions of elderly people found succor through the 1965 Medicare amendment to the Social Security Act.
Philippine President
1961-1965 - Diosdado Macapagal
1965-1986 - Ferdinand Marcos

US presidents & corresponding presidents in the Philippines

1897 - 1901 - William McKinley, Republican.
White House bio here...

In the 100-day war, the United States destroyed the Spanish fleet outside Santiago harbor in Cuba, seized Manila in the Philippines, and occupied Puerto Rico. "Uncle Joe" Cannon, later Speaker of the House, once said that McKinley kept his ear so close to the ground that it was full of grasshoppers. When McKinley was undecided what to do about Spanish possessions other than Cuba, he toured the country and detected an imperialist sentiment. Thus the United States annexed the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico.

1901-1909 - Theodore Roosevelt, Republican. WH bio here.

1909-1913 - William Taft, Republican. WH bio here.

Pres McKinley sent him to the Philippines in 1900 as chief civil administrator. Sympathetic toward the Filipinos, he improved the economy, built roads and schools, and gave the people at least some participation in government.

1913-1921 - Woodrow Wilson, Democrat. WH bio here.

1921-1923 - Warren Harding, Republican. WH bio here.

1923-1929 - Calvin Coolidge, Republican. WH bio here.

1929-1933 - Herbert Hoover, Republican. WH bio here.

1933-1945 - Franklin Roosevelt, Democrat. WH bio here.

1945-1953 - Harry Truman, Democrat. WH bio here.

First Philippine president of the 3rd Republic 7/4/46 - April 15, 1948 - Manuel Roxas

Monday, September 24, 2007

Filipinos in the UN through the years...

The Philippines was part of the present UN from its beginning in 1945.
In 1960, Philippine delegate, Lorenzo Sumulong parliamentary voice of support for freedom of the people of Eastern Europe communist occupied countries made the top shoe banging communist at that time very angry. Time article here.

hat tip: newsday.com

Saturday, September 22, 2007

Socialistic Philippines!

Why present day Philippines tend socialistic even with American influence of freedom, self-reliance and limited government.

Present day Filipinos are influence by Roosevelt's New Deal. Much like today's US Democratic party who believe in government big role in our individual lives - social security benefits, medicare, medicaid.

But a limited US army research in 1980's shed a little light ...

It required 2 major changes to the post-war status quo for the Philippine govt to defeat the Huks. 1st, US had to recognize the severity of the insurgency and provide appropriate amounts of advice and military and economic assistance to help counter it. Luckily, this American advice was sound and well received by an enlightened Filipino leader; Magsaysay. 2nd; a government victory required an administration in Manila that was more concerned with improving the quality of life for its citizens than with self-enrichment. Ramon Magsaysay provided the latter when he accepted the position of Secretary of National Defense and later won the office of President.
What attributes made this former Zambales resident and son of a village school teacher so successful in winning his fellow Filipinos' loyalty? Certainly his well-known honesty helped him achieve his position in the Congress. But it was his deep and sincere concern for his fellows that brought him to national attention and paved the way for his becoming the Secretary of National Defense. He was a man dedicated to duty and blessed with a personality that blended persistance and charisma with an ability to listen to those around him. Perhaps his greatest attribute, an attribute certainly reinforced by his own war-time experience as a guerrilla leader, was his ability to see the Huk guerrilla movement as symptomatic of greater diseases that were threatening his country -- poverty, rising social expectations, and an uncaring and corrupt central government.
These were the targets that Magsaysay set his sights on. He combined military operations with civic-action projects to form his grand strategy, a strategy that, if successful, would improve Philippine living conditions and remove the base of guerrilla strength - popular support. He demanded that each soldier, regardless of rank, be dedicated first to the people, then, to killing the guerrillas. He changed the basic tactics used by the Philippine military and fostered unconventional operations, while concurrently developing a more professional and competent armed forces. The military and the government had first to win the respect of the people before their anti-Huk campaign could ever produce tangible results. Military abuses ceased and soldiers or policemen implicated in abusing civilians were dealt with swiftly and harshly. Without the people's support, whatever gains the military made would vanish as soon as the last trooper returned to his garrison. Without the people's support, Huks would be unable to move freely or sustain themselves in the field.
With American assistance and the fortune of having Edward Lansdale's advice, counsel, and friendship, Magsaysay's strategy proved a resounding success. EDCOR provided land for reformed guerrillas. Other tracts of government land were sold to the people, schools were established, transportation and communication networks were repaired and improved and, for the first time, the armed forces worked side by side with the people to secure their mutual future.
As an epilogue to his remarkable life, Ramon Magsaysay was honored with a commemorative stamp issued by the United States shortly after his death in 1957. At the ceremony accompanying the stamp's issue, President Eisenhower eulogized this progressive leader and his contribution to Philippine democracy.
If we are ready to do our full part in combating communism, we must as a unit stand not only ready, as Magsaysay did, to bare his chest to the bayonet, if it comes to that, but to work day by day for the betterment - the spiritual, moral, intellectual, and material betterment -- of the people who live under freedom, so that not only may they venerate it but they can support it. This Magsaysay did, and in this I believe is his true greatness, the kind of greatness that will be remembered long after any words we can speak here will have been forgotten.
United States Support
Without American economic and military assistance to the Philippine governments after 1950, the Huks might well have succeeded in their rebellion. But, before we applaud the U.S. effort too quickly, perhaps we should consider that U.S. neglect and short sighted helped put the government in jeopardy. Before 1950, U.S. policy makers concentrated their attentions on Europe, were tired of war in the Pacific, and seemed blind to the many problems that tore at the islands. The land-tenure question had been present since the days the nation became an American protectorate and very little had been done to ease its burden on the Filipino farmer. Although land-tenure was a major factor in the years preceding WWII, after the war, U.S. policy ignored it and was intent on divestiture of responsibility for the islands. Economic aid was made available to the government after the war but the programs were poorly managed and did little other than increase the size of many Filipino elite's bank balances. Other programs, such as the various economic trade acts and the issue of collaboration served only to widen the gap between the people and their government. American foreign policy makers simply did not understand Filipino concerns and aspirations and therefore chose to ignore them. Many incisive and worthwhile reports on conditions in the Philippines (such as Bell Mission) went unheeded until the government in Manila nearly fell in 1950.
Luckily, once the American government realized how close to collapse the Quirino administration was in 1950, Washington reacted. JUSMAG reports, long ignored or given only summary attention, suddenly gained new respect and concern. The JUSMAG was expanded, aid began to flow in, and opinions expressed by some of the JUSMAG's exceptional advisors began to receive attention. Thanks in great measure to the Korean War that was attracting the lion's share of attention in Washington, advisors found themselves with great latitude and were able to develop comprehensive assistance programs that worked hand-in-hand with Magsaysay's objectives for integrating the armed forces with social reforms. Although the Philippines received large amounts of military aid and equipment from the United States during this period, most of it came from surplus WWII stocks. The equipment was simple to use and maintain, and allowed the AFP to adapt quickly to it and keep it operational. One should remember that the vast preponderance of newer equipment was committed elsewhere, Europe and Korea. Another result of the Korean War was that no U.S. troops were readily available for deployment to the Philippines and, with very few exceptions, American advisors were prohibited from taking the field with their Filipino counterparts until the latter stages of the insurgency. This was perhaps one of our greatest contributions to the Philippines during this period. Without foreign troops to assist them, the Philippine military was forced to develop on its own, under its own leaders, and fight to protect its own land and people. Once the Army became convinced that they were fighting to protect their countrymen, and not as an occupation force trying to subdue an unruly foreign
population, they began to receive the people's support. As already described, the alliance of the military with the villagers, and in turn the villagers reliance on the government, spelled the end for the Huk movement.
JUSMAG advisors did all they could to foster a sense of Filipino self-reliance. Whenever possible, they assumed back-row seats for themselves so that govt officials could look good and receive the credit for successful operations. Even when programs succeeded as direct results of American efforts, the advisors played down their own role and let a Filipino become the moment's hero. This built pride and self-esteem in both the officials involved and, more importantly, in the Filipino people. They saw themselves succeeding where others had failed and they tried to continue the pattern. When advice was given, it was given directly to the Filipino leader who needed it, as low in the organization as possible, and given by an advisor who the recipient knew and trusted. And how did they develop this trust? General Lansdale put it quite simply - treat them as equals, treat them fairly and honestly, never lie to them, and prove your intentions by displaying courage and willingly accepting the same hardships and inconveniences that they do. In essence then, you must demonstrate that you consider them as good as yourself and that you trust and respect them as much as you want them to trust and respect you.
By following these guides US helped the Philippine government solve its internal insurgency. The American government provided most of the material with which the Philippine military fought, provided the money that paid them, and provided advice when it was needed. But, it was Filipinos who fought the battles and defeated the guerrillas under the leadership of an unusual man endowed with the insight to see the larger problem that fostered the resistance, and a leader who aggressively sought to remove the causes for internal unrest in the future.

Except for soldiers pension program in early 1776, there was no social security assistance for anybody in United States until President Roosevelt’s great society expenditure in 1935.
Roosevelt's New Deal has been debunk by many economist including economist at Mises Institute.

Philippine was granted independence in 1946 by US legislators.
The first Filipino president after the independence was Manuel Roxas. Last president before dictatorship was Diosdado Macapagal, the father of today's president. Father and daughter have economic background, academically but not in capitalistic practice.

Capitalism in the Philippines for years is a dirty word.

Spanish influence is socialistic.

In the beginning, US influence was benignly competitive, literate capitalism.

Filipinos know in their heart, the American way is better for themselves. Educate oneself to help yourself, then help others. Many Filipinos, my parents included, went to school taught by Americans or fluent English speaking Filipinos taught by Americans, in provincial capital schools, then went back and taught in their towns and barrios.

Something went haywire as the years go by. Filipinos are independent, self reliant, literate but never became entrepreneurs in business sense.

I have not talk to or met a literate Filipino who have read or heard of Adam Smith, my University of Visayas educated cpa/auditor hubby included.

Monday, September 03, 2007

Decider - n - Chief

Staff writer, Glen Kessler of Washington Post admit who is the Decider - n - Chief in America! 'Idea generator', he writes about Pres. Bush. (from RealClearpolitics.com)
After seven years of an intense partnership, the president turns out to have been the idea generator after all, shifting Rice from her realist roots and infusing her with the idealistic desire to spread democracy throughout the Middle East. Now, in words that echo the president's, she awaits history's verdict.
"I'm enough of an historian to know that my reputation will be what my reputation is," Rice told reporters earlier this year. "It might be different in five months from five years to 50 years, and so I'm simply not going to worry about that."
This article is adapted from Glenn Kessler's "The Confidante: Condoleezza Rice and the Creation of the Bush Legacy," to be released tomorrow.

Saturday, September 01, 2007

Intensive Care Unit in US hospitals

Dr. W. E. Dandy, a neurosurgeon at John Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, Md started a 3 bed unit for post surgical neuro patients in 1923.
Barrow Neurological Institute site has a good historical narrative of the genesis of intensive care units as well as its own development.
Dedicated neuroscience units represented a relatively new concept to both St. Joseph's Hospital and the nursing profession at large. While Dr. W. E. Dandy is credited with opening a three-bed specialized care unit for postoperative neurosurgical patients in 1923 at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, the concept of such dedicated units was not widespread, nor did the concept of intensive care units (ICUs) take root for decades. ICUs were just beginning to appear in the late 1960s and early 1970s and typically were designated as postanesthesia care or coronary care units. In the nursing literature, a dedicated neuroscience ICU was first mentioned in 1975. At the time Barrow was founded, there were no dedicated neuroscience units in Arizona. Consistent with the national trend, the first ICU at St. Joseph's Hospital was the coronary care unit; the second ICU was the NICU. That first NICU housed a total of 6 beds. Four beds were clustered in a general ward setting, and there were two private rooms and one hyperbaric chamber. Despite the neurosurgical title of the NICU, nurses working there treated patients with disease processes other than those with a neurological dysfunction. The NICU included patients undergoing hyperbaric oxygen therapy and renal dialysis, patients requiring support by an iron lung, and burn patients. Ultimately, these services remained a part of the care provided at St. Joseph's Hospital, except for patients with burns. The latter were automatically transferred to Maricopa County Hospital when the burn unit opened there in the 1970s.
During these early years, scant assistive technology was available. Consequently, nursing care relied on close observation of patients and changes in their level of consciousness (LOC). As nurses and neurosurgeons recollect, the calls made to physicians from the ICU nurses were in response to changes in a patient's LOC. When reports of a decreased LOC were communicated to the physician, nurses were instructed to give patients a "pinch of mannitol." The LOC was the single most important assessment parameter. The NICU had no cardiac monitors. There was no invasive blood pressure monitoring. Temperatures were measured with mercury-filled thermometers, and blood pressure was measured with traditional sphygmomanometers. The only invasive lines were urinary catheters and nasogastric tubes.
In 1962, one registered nurse (RN) cared for one or two patients in the NICU. However, the staffing pattern was different on the general neurological-neurosurgical floor. Because specialized neurological units were new, it was difficult to establish staffing patterns and appropriate patient-to-nursing care ratios on the floor. At the time, the popular nursing model for patient care was referred to as Team Nursing. The Team consisted of an RN, a licensed practical nurse (LPN), and one nurse's aide to provide nursing care for 5 or 6 patients. The RNs were responsible for performing patient assessments, reviewing laboratory results, noting orders, and all communications with physicians. The LPNs administered all medications to the patients cared for by the team. The nurses' aide or orderly helped with the manual demands of patient care such as lifting, turning, and getting patients out of bed.
The physical component of neuroscience nursing was demanding. There were no specialized chairs to facilitate getting patients up or specially constructed slide boards to move patients from one horizontal surface to another. There were no special rinse free soaps for use during bathing. There were no electric beds. Hand cranks were used to raise or lower the head or knee position. The work was demanding, but as a former nurse who worked on the general neurosurgical ward for 20 years quipped "Of course it wasn't easy; if it was, any nurse could do it." The nurses who elected to work at Barrow and the physicians with whom they worked were committed to the ideal that every patient deserved a nurse who specialized in the care of the neurologically impaired.

My personal professional experience reflects above article. Most hospitals in the 60's, ICU started as coronary care units with cardiac monitors. Cardiologist train and certify nurses to read EKG and give appropriate treatment and meds in cardiac emergencies - defibrillation in V-fib, Lidocaine for V-tach, Atropine for bradycardia, Epinephrine for standstill among others. First and foremost, nurses observe, assess first before action!
My neurosurgical nursing experience started in early 80's. Observation and Assessment still first and foremost skill. Level of consciousness with coma scale and pupillary changes were important nursing observation and assessment skill.

Monday, August 27, 2007

Poor in USA...

From Robert Rector at Heritage Foundation:
The following are facts about persons defined as “poor” by the Census Bureau, taken from a variety of government reports: 46% of all poor households actually own their own homes. The average home owned by persons classified as poor by the Census Bureau is a three-bedroom house with one-and-a-half baths, a garage, and a porch or patio. 80% of poor households have air conditioning. By contrast, in 1970, only 36% of the entire U.S. population enjoyed air conditioning. Only 6% of poor households are overcrowded; two thirds have more than two rooms per person. The typical poor American has more living space than the average individual living in Paris, London, Vienna, Athens, and other cities throughout Europe. (These comparisons are to the average citizens in foreign countries, not to those classified as poor.) Nearly three quarters of poor households own a car; 31% own two or more cars. 97%of poor households have a color television; over half own two or more color televisions. 78% have a VCR or DVD player. 62% have cable or satellite TV reception. 89% own microwave ovens, more than half have a stereo, and a more than a third have an automatic dishwasher.

Monday, August 20, 2007

Military History teaches us...by V.D. Hanson

a must read at this site

Military history teaches us, contrary to popular belief these days, that wars aren’t necessarily the most costly of human calamities. The first Gulf War took few lives in getting Saddam out of Kuwait; doing nothing in Rwanda allowed savage gangs and militias to murder hundreds of thousands with impunity. Hitler, Mao, Pol Pot, and Stalin killed far more off the battlefield than on it. The 1918 Spanish flu epidemic brought down more people than World War I did. And more Americans—over 3.2 million—lost their lives driving over the last 90 years than died in combat in this nation’s 231-year history. Perhaps what bothers us about wars, though, isn’t just their horrific lethality but also that people choose to wage them—which makes them seem avoidable, unlike a flu virus or a car wreck, and their tolls unduly grievous. Yet military history also reminds us that war sometimes has an eerie utility: as British strategist Basil H. Liddell Hart put it, “War is always a matter of doing evil in the hope that good may come of it.” Wars—or threats of wars—put an end to chattel slavery, Nazism, fascism, Japanese militarism, and Soviet Communism.

Tuesday, August 07, 2007

Minimum wage...

When will Philippine government officials learn that minimum wage is not a poverty remedy!
'simplify the wage structure by incorporating an existing P50 cost of living allowance (COLA) to the minimum wage. the full P362 daily rate will be used in computing 13th month pay and other benefits. the new minimum wages for Metro Manila are either P325 or P362.

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Gerber baby food recall - rice & oatmeal

FoxNews.com article here.
Organic rice cereal and organic oatmeal cereal, sold in 8-ounce boxes.
Organic rice cereal UPC code - 15000 12504
Organic oatmeal cereal UPC code - 15000 12502.
Baby food should be not be eaten.
Call Gerber parents resource center - 800-443-7237 or 231-928-3000 to return product and full refund.

Thursday, July 05, 2007

Illegal immigration

Totally agree with Prof Hanson on his op-ed today. Article here. Substitute Mexico with Philippines, same solution and end result applies.
Were the government to enforce laws already passed - fine employers for hiring illegal aliens, actually build the approved fences, beef up the border patrol, issue verifiable identification - we would then soon be dealing with a static population of illegal aliens. And that pool would insidiously shrink, not annually grow.
Some of the 12 million here illegally would willingly return home. Some with criminal records could be deported. Some would marry U.S. citizens. Some could be given work visas. Some could apply for earned citizenship.
The point is that our formidable powers of assimilation would finally catch up and have time to work on a population that would be at last fixed, quantifiable and identifiable. As aliens were more readily integrated with the general citizen population, Spanish would evolve into a helpful second, not a single alternate, language. Wages would rise for workers already here - many of them soon to be Mexican-American citizens - without competition from a perpetual influx of illegal aliens who work more cheaply.
Mexico would be forced to deal with rather than export its own problems. Billions in earnings would stay in the United States to help our own entry-level and legal immigrants from Mexico, not be sent back as remittances to relatives.
In short, a savvy public is neither racist nor hysterical in wanting the border closed now. It's the only comprehensive solution to the present mess of illegal immigration.

Sunday, July 01, 2007

Reciprocity

Since immigration reform is dead this year, congress and most of us will have more time to think through what is best for us individually, for our adopted country and the country of our birth...

Saturday, June 30, 2007

Thursday, June 28, 2007

robots, farm work & man's creative triggers...

Adam Smith wrote about why man find ways to innovate...this robot may replace farm workers. Wired.com article here. Tip from hard working MicheleMalkin.com link Borjas blog here, Visionic Robotics site here.

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

England's health care woes

from RealClearPolitics.com, a nurse from England criticize Sicko, the movie. Article here.
Upon launching its state health service in 1948, the British government promised that it would provide its citizens with all the "medical, dental and nursing care" needed, so that "everyone -- rich or poor -- [could] use it." To make good on its plans, the government nationalized more than 3,000 independent hospitals, clinics and care homes. But today, after nearly six decades of attempting to make socialized medicine work, the NHS is in a perilous state.Consider waiting lists. Across Britain, patients wait years for routine or even emergency treatments. And many die while waiting. Indeed, the NHS cancels around 100,000 operations because of shortages each year. In a growing number of communities, it is increasingly difficult for people to simply get an appointment with an NHS general practitioner for a regular checkup.Further, when it comes to keeping patients healthy, NHS hospitals are notoriously unfit. After admittance to state hospitals, more than 10 percent of patients contract infections and illnesses that they did not have prior to arrival. And according to the Malnutrition Advisory Group, up to 60 percent of NHS patients are
undernourished during inpatient stays.Consequently, many Britons have turned to
outside practitioners for treatment, and the private health-care market has boomed. Today, more than 6.5 million people have private medical insurance, 6 million have cash plans, 8 million pay out-of-pocket for a range of complimentary therapies, and 250,000 self-fund each year for private surgery. Millions more opt for private dentistry, ophthalmics and long-term care.Meanwhile, despite the state's continued claims that it can deliver quality health care to all, government ministers are increasingly willing to quietly outsource health care to the private sector. In other words, instead of directly providing health care through the NHS, the British government is shifting to simply paying the bills. In 2000, Tony Blair's government authorized the treatment of state-funded patients in private hospitals for the first time. More recently, the government has made it clear that it would like all NHS hospitals to be recast as Independent Foundation Trusts able to attract private
investment. But even with these efforts, the British government has found it hard
to cover its expensive obligations. So in addition to waiting lists, substandard care and increased outsourcing, the government has adopted outright rationing to control costs. Through a concept called "Health Technology Assessments," the United Kingdom now empowers government-appointed experts to dictate which drugs,
procedures and treatments are available for public consumption. Charged with controlling costs and watching the bottom line, these bureaucrats are expected to save money, not lives. Already, this system has barred the purchase of Herceptin, a lifesaving breast-cancer drug. Alzheimer's patients have had trouble obtaining Aricept, a drug that improves cognition in those afflicted with the degenerative disease.

Saturday, June 23, 2007

Fred Thompson Report

Daily blog of a potential '08 Republican candidate for president.
Click here for website.

Friday, April 27, 2007

Property Taxes in United States of America...

Property Taxes: The Road to American Serfdom
ACRU blog here.

It is often said, and correctly so, that the hallmark of the American dream is homeownership. This was intentional at our country's Founding. James Otis
famously said, "A man's house is his castle," pointing to the essential link between homeownership and liberty (See "Against Writs of Assistance", 1761). And James Madison ensured that this link would be preserved, by including protections of property rights in the Bill of Rights, under the Fifth Amendment. One of the greatest barometers of the success of the American Experiment through our history has been the ever expanding portion of Americans that own their home, proving true that this indeed is the land of opportunity. Overall, since 2004 and according to government figures, the rate of U.S. homeownership is just over 69 percent -- an all time high. Minority homeownership has eclipsed 50 percent for the first time. For many (most?) Americans, homeownership is the principle vehicle for building wealth.

About ACRU: American Civil Rights Union is a non-partisan 501c(3) tax-exempt organization and receives no federal grants or funding.

Saturday, April 21, 2007

Baptism...

Benign assimilation, filipino style...

Friday, April 13, 2007

Pope Benedict gets specific...

Message to 22nd World Youth Day, Jan 27, 2007, Pope Benedict said...

three areas of daily life to demonstrate love of God.

1. Witnesses to love of Christ
Church, our spiritual family, made up of all disciples of Christ. Mindful of his words: “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn 13:35), stimulate with enthusiasm and charity activities of parishes, communities, ecclesial movements and youth groups you belong. Be attentive in your concern for welfare of others, faithful to commitments you made. Do not hesitate to joyfully abstain from some of entertainments; cheerfully accept necessary sacrifices; testify to faithful love for Jesus by proclaiming his Gospel, especially among people your age.

2. Preparing for the future
Express love and grow in it is preparation for the future. If engaged to be married, God has a project of love for your future as couple and family. Discover it with Church help, free from common prejudice that says Christianity's commandments and prohibitions places obstacles to joy of love and impedes from fully enjoying happiness a man and woman seek in reciprocal love. Love of man and woman is the origin of human family and the couple formed by a man and a woman has its foundation in God’s original plan (cf Gen 2:18-25). Learning to love each other as a couple is wonderful journey, yet it requires a demanding “apprenticeship”. Period of engagement, very necessary in order to form a couple, is time of expectation and preparation that needs to be lived in purity of gesture and words. Allows you to mature in love, in concern and in attention for each other; helps to practise self-control and develop respect for each other. These are characteristics of true love that does not place emphasis on seeking its own satisfaction or its own welfare. In your prayer together, ask the Lord to watch over and increase your love and to purify it of all selfishness. Do not hesitate to respond generously to the Lord’s call, for Christian matrimony is truly and wholly a vocation in the Church. Likewise, dear young men and women, be ready to say “yes” if God should call you to follow the path of ministerial priesthood or the consecrated life. Your example will be one of encouragement for many of your peers who are seeking true happiness.
3. Growing in love each day
Third area of commitment that comes with love is daily life with its multiple relationships, to family, studies, work and free time. Cultivate talents, not only to obtain a social position, but also to help others to “grow”. Develop capacities, not only to become more “competitive” and “productive”, but to be “witnesses of charity”. In addition to professional training, also make an effort to acquire religious knowledge that will help carry out your mission in a responsible way. In particular, I invite you to carefully study the social doctrine of the Church so that its principles may inspire and guide your action in the world. May the Holy Spirit make you creative in charity, persevering in commitments, and brave in your initiatives, so that you will be able to offer your contribution to building up of the “civilisation of love”. Horizon of love is truly boundless: it is the whole world!

full message click here. hat tip: Chiesa...click here.

Saturday, April 07, 2007

Privacy Issue with Blogger resolved or solved!

Whatever...
I stop posting because I had a privacy issue with Blogger after I switched to their new business partnership with Google.
Happy Easter everyone. May the Risen Christ shower you with the Advocate...

Saturday, February 10, 2007

Cooper Union, Peter Cooper info for my apo...

Barry Casselman of RealClearPolitics call him 'Peter the Great'
He was America's first public philanthropist. He built the first steam locomotive. He invented Jello. He was one of the handful of men who were responsible for the first transatlantic cable. He put the first elevator shaft in a building (and did it before the elevator was invented!). He was the Bill Gates of his day.
Peter Cooper was born in New York in 1791. (George Washington was in his first term as president.) He died in 1883. He was one of the greatest American capitalists of the 19th century, but what made him unique was his original and compassionate notion that, having made a great fortune, he needed to give much of it back to the community in which he lived. Born in modest means, he routinely gave his money to institutions and causes for the poor and for poltical reform. In 1876, at the age of 85, he ran for president of the United States as the nominee of the National Independent Party, He received only 1% of the vote, but many of his then radical ideas later became the standards of public policy today.
Wikipedia entry about Peter Cooper here.
Cooper Union College website here.
Saturday Outreach Program free of charge for high school students info here.

Thursday, January 25, 2007

Philippines & Islam

Pajamas Media blogger has historical picture of Filipinos relationship with Muslims.
Growing up in Bohol, Moros are indifferent Filipinos. Filipinos nonetheless like land based Ifugaos in Luzon. Sea based and head chopper culture develop the last couple of decades.
Part 2 of exclusive Pajamas Media column here
Many Filipino Muslims interacts with Christian Filipinos today. Culturally and spiritually, they don't assimilate well. But, Christian Filipinos tolerated them until they started chopping heads.
Most Filipinos, Christian or Muslim living in the Philippines, freedom in their hearts and minds are limited. Limited by family traditions, myopic view in education and trade and exchange anxiety.

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

Freedom! Freedom! Freedom! for Filipinos...

just released Economic Freedom Index from Heritage Foundation
Least freedom Filipinos enjoy is Freedom from Corruption...
Nearby Hongkong is number one on the Freedom Index...

More Freedom, please, for prosperity...

Freedom from excessive local and national government regulation!
just released Economic Freedom Index from Heritage Foundation
The economy of the Philippines is 57.4 percent free, according to our 2007 assessment, which makes it the world's 97th freest economy.
Investment Freedom - 30.0%
The Philippines maintains barriers to many foreign investments. Two negative lists restrict both foreign investment and the ability of foreigners to practice in numerous sectors. Unofficial barriers, like high levels of corruption, also impede foreign investment. The mining sector is now open to 100 percent foreign-owned companies. Both residents and non-residents may hold foreign exchange accounts, although non-residents may do so only with foreign currency deposits or proceeds from conversions of property in the Philippines. Payments, capital transactions, and transfers are subject to numerous restrictions, controls, quantitative limits, and authorizations.
Property Rights - 30.0%
The Philippine judicial system enforces the law weakly. Judges are supposed to be independent, but several are corrupt, having been appointed strictly for political reasons. Organized crime is a strong deterrent to the administration of justice.
Freedom from Corruption - 25.0%
Corruption is perceived as widespread. The Philippines ranks 117th out of 158 countries in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index for 2005.

Saturday, January 13, 2007

In everything there's a reason...

Same reason 80% of Filipinos remain Roman Catholic, same reason Filipinos who remain in the Philippines are 80% socialist and 20% capitalist

Monday, January 08, 2007

Dr. or Mr. Jacinto, you are doing the right thing...

Adam Smith wrote in The Wealth of Nations that man only intends his own security and by doing so, produce the greatest value for all. 'By pursuing his own interest he frequently promotes that of the society more effectually than when he really intends to promote it.'
Good luck and God speed...
Filipino doctors working as nurses in the US. News article here.